


Special

by MerlinWinchestr



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:47:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27409825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MerlinWinchestr/pseuds/MerlinWinchestr
Summary: Willie jumped, the engine dying as he lost his focus and his hand slipped through the center console. Leaping to his feet and through the car, Willie saw a man wearing a long coat step out of the shadows and take a step toward him, smiling disarmingly. “Caleb Covington, at your service.”
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	Special

**Author's Note:**

> **Category:** Gen  
>  **Rating:** K+  
>  **Warnings:** None  
>  **Characters:** Willie, Caleb Covington  
>  **Settings:** Pre-series

# Special

Being dead wasn’t exactly what Willie had thought it would be, but it was still pretty great. He could skate anywhere he wanted, whenever he wanted, and he never had to worry about getting caught. Sure it was a bit lonely since no one could actually see or talk to him, but he was used to being alone. At least there were no bullies in the afterlife.

Time moved different after death it seemed. It felt like only a few weeks had passed since he watched the hearse take his body away, but he knew it had actually been several months. And still the world spun on and he continued skating. Passing through the lifers, as he had taken to calling them, never got old, and even though he could just poof to anywhere in the world, he still preferred the streets of Hollywood. 

Plus it let him keep an eye on his friends. They all kept skating after he died, but he had noticed that they went out of their way to avoid the place he had been killed, which he was secretly grateful for. It did suck not being able to interact with his friends, though, especially when he saw the cops and they didn’t. 

Being dead had its disadvantages, and not being able to help his friends out of trouble was the worst. Especially David. The poor kid had only started skating because of Willie, and the guy looked a step away from a breakdown as he stood beside the police car, nervously fidgeting with his board. Sammy wasn’t helping things as they were being their usual self and mouthing off to the cop every chance they got. 

Willie bit his lip, trying to come up with a way to help. He’d been practicing over the past few months, but haunting was harder then the movies made it out to be. He was pretty confident he could at least open the door to the car, but anything beyond that was still out of his skill zone. Maybe instead of opening the door, he could try for the sirens. After all, how hard could it be to flip a button? Sirens would distract the cops far better than simply opening a door. 

He jumped as the sirens started blaring, the lights flashing, and even the wipers began going full speed. The cops shouted, ignoring the skaters as the turned toward their malfunctioning car. Willie grinned and cheered as his friends took the opportunity to make their escape. He turned to follow them, but paused and eyed the car once more. Concentrating, he imagined the car going silent and, after a moment, the sirens stopped and the car went still, much to the cop’s confusion.

From that moment on, Willie spent every moment he wasn’t skating practicing his new-found talent. It wasn’t just police cars he could mess with, he realized fairly quickly, but any vehicle. Even without keys, he could turn cars on and off, set off alarms, and it was far easier to move objects in a car then outside of one for some reason. The only thing he hadn’t attempted since that day was driving, but that should be simple enough to test out. All he needed was the right care, and the blue convertible sitting all alone was looking pretty good. 

Sitting behind the wheel, he focused on imagining the engine starting. Within seconds, the engine roared to life. Willie grinned and reached to put the car in drive when— 

“I’m impressed. You did that quickly.” 

Willie jumped, the engine dying as he lost his focus and his hand slipped through the center console. Leaping to his feet and through the car, Willie saw a man wearing a long coat step out of the shadows and take a step toward him. 

“Y—you can see me?” Willie stammered, stepping back until he was half in the car. 

The man chuckled, offering a disarming smile and taking a step backwards, arms held out in a calming manner. 

“Indeed I can, Mr. …?” 

“W-Willie.” 

“Willie.” If possible, the man’s smile widened. “Caleb Covington, at your service.” 

“How can you see me?” A voice in the back of his mind was telling him to run, to get as far away from this man as possible, but this was the first time since he died that anyone had seen or spoke to him. So, he stayed.

“You and I are alike, young William.” 

“You’re a ghost?” 

He tried to keep the disappointment out of his voice, but the man pretended not to notice. 

“Ah, smart as well as skilled. Tell me, how did you start that car?” 

Willie’s eyes widened, suddenly wondering if there were ghost cops and if he was screwed. Was there a ghost jail? Could he be tortured? Sure stealing a car was a crime for the living, but he was dead! It was just a test; he was going to bring it back! 

“I, um, I—” 

“It’s ok, William. You’re not in any trouble. I’m just curious.” 

“Why?” Willie asked, relaxing slightly. “Can’t all ghosts do it?” 

“No, they can’t.” Covington’s smile faltered momentary, before widening once more. “You must be a very special ghost, William.” 

Willie ducked his head, embarrassed. Special? Him? He’d been called a lot of things in his life, but special was not one of them. 

“Maybe I could teach you?” he offered hesitantly. 

“I would love that.” Covington said. “Say, are you hungry?” 

Willie looked at him in confusion. 

“Ghosts can’t eat. I’ve tried.” 

“What if I said that I know a place where they can?” 

“Really?” 

“Really. It’s not far from here actually. Would you like to see?” 

The uneasy feeling that had slightly subsided came back full force. He could already feel his mouth watering at the idea of being able to eat something, anything again. But what did he know about this mysterious ghost? 

“There are others there, just like us,” Caleb added, “Ghosts who can teach you more tricks and show you around this afterlife we find ourselves in.” 

“Well,” Willie hesitated, but now that he was actually talking to someone the loneliness of the past few months fully sank in. “Sure! Sounds like fun.” 

Caleb grinned and clapped a hand around his shoulders, gently leading him out of the blue convertible and starting down the darkening street 

“William, I think this is the start of something special.”


End file.
